5 Ways to Avoid Being Overwhelmed at Work
Ever feel like the walls are closing in on you when you’re sitting at your desk with piles of work and deadlines to get to? Well, chances are the walls are exactly where they’re supposed to be and you’re just feeling a bit overwhelmed. You’re not alone, it’s all of us at one point.
Feeling overwhelmed and stressed at work is fairly common. We all face challenges that are specific to us and our jobs. Let’s explore some tips on how to avoid feeling overwhelmed at work so you can stay on top of your game and steer clear of burnout!
5 Ways to Avoid Feeling Overwhelmed at Work
Organize yourself
We cannot stress how important it is to organize yourself at work. This comprises getting all your documents in place, setting your calendar for deadlines, prioritizing tasks, creating to-do lists, and all that good stuff. There are some great task management tools to help you out with all of this or you can go solo. Whatever the case is, just streamline yourself so your brain is not as cluttered as your desktop. This will help significantly with stress control.
Ask For Help
Oftentimes we tend to put excessive pressure on ourselves and think we can do everything on our own. While this can be a good way to motivate yourself, it can also make you feel overwhelmed and distraught. So, ask for help from your co-workers if you need it and build strong bonds with them so you have a clear flow of communication. Just like with our personal lives, professionally we also need to open up about our problems so we can get some closure and have a sound mind.
Listen to Some Music
This one might seem insignificant but that is hardly the case. Music has proven to be effective in reducing stress among employees across numerous industry verticals. It helps distract your mind from the rushing thoughts and allows you to slow down. Different types of music also have different effects on the brain. Classical music like Mozart or Beethoven creates a soothing ambiance whereas rap music can be inspiring and motivating. There’s even a song that was designed by science that is supposed to reduce up to 65% of stress!
Move Around and Take a Step Back
A lot of us underestimate the power of exercise and movement of the body. Naturally, humans are supposed to be active beings that burn both energy and stress. However, due to the style of work in the 21st century, we rarely move around during office time. When you feel overwhelmed, moving around, taking walks, and just taking a step back can help you out considerably. Also, it doesn’t need to be anything extensive and can be as simple as breathing exercises or arm movements. Anything to get the blood pumping and your body moving.
Set SMART goals
Ever heard about S.M.A.R.T goals? S.M.A.R.T is an approach for goal setting that believes in setting goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-based. These goals help you stay focused and create small milestones that work as incentives toward reaching one prime objective. Goal setting has been used time and again for reducing stress and burnout at work. It’s simple, you have what you need to achieve right in front of you and create pathways for reaching that successfully.
That’s a Wrap
Well, there you have it, some simple ways to avoid feeling overwhelmed at work. We hope you try these out next time you’re feeling stressed and overwhelmed to see if any of these are effective for you. Everyone has different problems and what may work for you might not work for someone else. So, feel free to mix things up and find a set of tips that are best suited for you and your job type. Remember to take things easy and pay attention to your brain and body.
